Closure holding device



Aug. 15, 1933. c. GREENE CLOSURE HOLDING DEVICE Filed Sept. 10, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. Cuff/5 Greene ATTORNEY.

Aug. 15, 1933. Q GREENE 1,922,676

CLOSURE HOLDING DEVICE Filed Sept. 10, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet, 2

Fig. 7

INVENTOR BY CU/"f/S Greene ATTORN EY Patented Aug. 15, 1933 CLOSURE HOLDKNG DEVICE Curtis Greene, San Diego, Calif.

Application September 10, 1930 Serial No. 480,927

2 Claims.

My invention relates to checks and catches for doors, gates, or other closure members, and one of the objects is to provide a means which is very effective for automatically checking and catching garage or barn doors or fence gates which have to be held open for the passage of vehicles or other purposes. A further object is to provide such a means that is designed to check, retard and stop the opening of doors and the like and to holdthe same open in a thoroughly safe and reliable way, and with the greatest possible convenience, limiting the labor required when opening the door or gate to merely swinging it outwardly with enough momentum to carry it partially over the catch which automatically checks, catches and holds the door or gate nearthe edge of the roadway or other open position. From this position it may be reached, when it is to be closed, with much greater convenience than ii it were free to swing outwardly beyond the catch.

From this position, the door or gate may be released to swing in either direction iromthe catch by merely pressing a foot obliquely to the side and downwardly on the spring member of the Z5 closure catch.

A further object of my invention is to provide a yieldable, resilient catch, to prevent injury not only to the various parts of the catch itself, but also to the closure member, which is likely to be severely wrenched and damaged when striking an unyielding obstruction at its edge, particularly at or near its upper or lower edge; and also to prevent injury to any person who in walking about may strike the catch, and who would be in danger of being tripped'by a rigid catch, but

not by a light, flexible one.

A further object of my invention is to provide such a catch which is very simple and rugged in construction, inexpensive to manufacture, long 40 lived, and proof against accidental injury.

With the above and other objects in view as will appear hereinafter, my invention further includes the following novel features and details of construction, to be hereinafter more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and particularly set forth in the appended claims. I

In the drawings;

7 Figure 1 is a perspective view of a garage or barn door and or" my check and catch installed at the side of the roadway. leading from the doorway, and in operative relation to the door,

but clear of the same; Fig. '2 is an enlarged side elevational View of my device, separateand apart from the door, with the spring in its normal,

vertical position; Fig. 3 is a longitudinal crosssectional view of the same taken through 33 of Fig. 2 with the supporting member shown fragmen'tarily; Fig. i is a side elevational view of the same, with the door or gate (which is shown fragmentarily in cross-section) held in an open position by the device, and with the various moving parts shown outlined in dotted lines in the positions they assume when the door or gate is pushed in the direction toward the rigidly installed base portion of the check and catch; and with the same moving parts shown outlined in broken lines in the positions they assume when the door or gate is pushed in the direction away from said base portion; Fig. 5 is7 a side elevational view of the device with the check and catch portion depressed and pushed clear of the door or gate, (which is shown fraginentarily) to permit the same to move freely in either direction; Fig. 6 is' a sectional elevational View of the catch plate on the door or gate, taken on the line 6-6 of Fig. 4; Fig. 7

is a side elevational view of a modified form of the main portion of my invention; Fig. 8 is an elevational sectional view of a modified form so of the base portion of my device, with a portion of the spring shown fragmentarily; and Fig. 9 is a perspective view of a door with my catch mounted horizontally on the side of a post and in operative relation to the door, but clear of the same.

Similar characters of reference refer to similar parts and portions throughout the several views of the drawings.

In the one form of my invention shown in Figs. 1 to 6, inclusive, the main portion of the device is supported on agalvanized iron pipe 1, which is of suiiicient length and diameter to anchor the device securely when installed, by being embedded "in the ground, pavement, or other foundation, with its upper end flush with or a short distance above the surface of the ground or pavement.

This supporting pipe is provided with screw threads in its interior for a short distance from its upper end, Into this threaded hole is secured a plug 2 which may be a metal casting, its lower portion having a reduced shank which is externally threaded and screwed into the upper end of the pipe. The upper portion of the memher or plug 2 is in the form of the upper half of a horizontal, circular ring or torus. The central hole of the ring or torus extends downwardly through the shank. The outer edge portion of the plug is considerably larger than the pipe and forms a shoulder against which the upper end of the pipe abuts, and may also form a floor flange.

The aforesaid hole through the plug is provided with screw threads of the proper pitch to receive the lower portion of a strong steel wire coil spring 3, the pitch of the threads being substantially equal to that of the convolutions oi the spring, which may be either tightly Wound or provided with a narrow spacing between the coils. Several deep, wide vertical grooves 4 are provided at regular intervals in the walls of the hole in the plug, interrupting the threads therein. These grooves are for the purpose of keeping the space between the spring and the rounded upper portion of the plug drained and free from.

face, without breaking or permanent distortion.

Thus, the plug supports the spring when it is forced to the side in any manner, either in normal operation, when stopping the door, or if it is struck accidentally, and preventsinjury to the spring.

."At the free end of the spring is supported the check and catch means, which consists in this instance of a bolt 5 of wrought iron, the terminal portion or" its head 6 being ,provided witlra'tlneaded shank 7, which is screwed into a the upper end of the spring. 'The portion of the of the spring.

head above the shank'l is short and cylindrical and concentric with the shank, and its diameter is substantially equal to the outside diameter It forms a shoulder engaging the upper end of thespring, andits upper end is square or normal to'its, axis. "The bolt is provided withanother cylindrical shank .8 of small diameter, integral and concentric with the head, which it joins at the shoulder last described, extending upwardly a short distance'therefrom in alinement with the spring when in its posi tion of rest. Integral and concentric with the shank8 at its upper end, the check and catch disc 9 is provided, its ends being square or nor mal with the axis of the bolt, of which itiorms the upper end. Its diameter is considerably less than the diameter of the head 6, but is'two or three timesthe diameter of .the shank 8.

.The device as shown is installed vertically, the pipe being embedded in the ground or pavement at ornear the edge of the roadway leading from thedoor or gate 10,.at a distance from the pivotal supports 11, slightly less than the l ngthof. 1e,, lo,wer edgeof the door or gate,

andat such an elevation that the top of the plug 2 is :alittle more thanthe-diameter of the spring 3 below said lower edge of the door or gate.

*Qnthe door or: gate or other closure member, catch plate means are provided, consisting in this. instanceoi the catch .plate 12, which is a piece of strong strap metal, a little wider than the spring'B, and attached to the portion of the door 'or gate which passes'directly over the spring when the door or gate is swung out above its lower edge. plate extends downwardly and at a very small wardly. One end of the catch plate is provided with a hole to receive the countersunk screw 13 with which it is screwed against the outer face of the door or gate, (being the face toward the stop when the door or gate approaches the same from its closed position) a short distance From said end the catch angle outwardly from the door or gate, and is gradually warped to a shallow, channel-shaped cross-section, concave outwardly. -t the lower edge of the door or gate it is bent inwardly, the

channel-shaped cross-section being continued around the bend. Thence the catch plate continues horizontally across and against the lower surfaceof the door or gate, and at right angles to the'edge' of the same, its cross-section being of shallow channel shape, concave downwardly. At about two-thirds of the thickness of the door or gate from said edge at which it is bent inwardly, the catch plate is bent upwardly at an angle of .a little more than degrees into a recess provided in the door or gate, Said recessis of rectangular cross-section and of substantially the same width as the catch plate,

and extends to the inner surface of the door or gate. From the bend last described, to its end at the inner side 01" the door or gate, the catch plate has a flat, rectangular cross-section. From said bend it continuesfistraight and inclined toward the rear wall or the recess for a short distance, and is then bent upwardly and outwardly to a horizontal direction along the upper wall oi the recess. A'hole is provided in the center of the catch plate at the lower edgeof theibend last described, to receive a countersunk screw 14, which screws the catch plate against the rear wall of the recess. From said bend the catch plate continuous straight and horizontal along and against the upper wall of the recess and a' short distance beyond the same, and is thenbent downwardly at an angle of alittle more than 90 degrees, and continues straight to a very short distance above the lower edge of the door or gate, where it terminates squarely. This straight terminal portion of the catch plate is divided into two equal flat prongs 15 by .the notch 15 along its center. At its lower end, said notch is about half as wide as the catch plate. with straight and converging sides, to apoint, about half way between said lower end and the last described bend'in the catch plate, from which point, upwardly, its sides are parallel, and its width at little greater than the diameter of the small shank 8 or the bolt 5. It is rounded at its upper end and reaches substantially to the top of said bend in the catch plate.

The inclined, flat, straight sections of the catch plate, one secured to the rear wall ,of

ofthe bolt 5, the notch 16 providing space for i the shank '8 of the bolt to lie between said prongs in a substantially horizontal position.

When it is desired to open the door or gate Thence, it continues upwardly for the passage of a'vehicle, it is pushed outwardly from its closed position, the momentum from the push carrying it partially over the check and catch and causing the spring to bend and passunder and along the catch plate when it is struckby the same. The outer portion of the spring, when it engages the channel-shaped bottom portion of the catch plate, lies along the same and is held substantially at its center by its inclined sides, the bolt being held by the spring in a horizontal position.

When the bolt head 6 has cleared the lower portion of the catch plate, the check and catch disc 9 engages and moves along the center of said lower portion until it clears the bend at the inner end thereof, when it is forced upwardly until it engages the portion of the catch plate lying against the upper wall of the recess in the door or gate. At it is forced upwardly, the shank 8 of the bolt enters the notch 16 and is held between the sides thereof, so that lateral movement of the bolt is restricted between very narrow limits. In this position, the door or gate is yieldably caught and stopped, for if it continues to be forced outwardly, the inner end of the check and catch disc 9 engages the two prongs of the catch plate, and motion of the door or gate in that direction is limited to the tension of the spring, the inward inclination of said prongs offsetting the slight downward component of the pull of the spring; and if the door or gate is forced inwardly, i. e., in the direction toward its closed position, the inclined, straight section of the catch plate which is secured to the rear wall of the recess in the door or gate, moves into engagement with the outer end of the check and catch disc 9, and forces the spring to arch upwardly and backwardly and to retard, and finally to stop, further movement of the door or gate in that direction, the

inclination of said section of the catch plate forced inwardly, arching the spring. The lower portion of the spiral spring 3 may be bent until it substantially conforms to the curvature of the adjacent portion of the socket in the plug 2.

From the foregoing it will be noted that the door or gate is held by the check and catch very securely and at the same time very flexibly, so that no damage can occur to the door or gate through wrenching, and that the parts of the device itself are cushioned from impact and thus protected from injury or displacement, so that they may be safely made relatively small, light and inexpensive.

When the door or gate is caught by the check and catch means, and it is desired to free it, a foot of the operator, designated 17 in the drawings, is pressed obliquely to the side and downwardly upon the spring, which forces the check and catch disc 9 clear of the catch plate and of the door or gate. When the foot is removed from the spring, the latter assumes its normal,

vertical position of rest, and the door or gate is free to swing in either direction. When, after having been released, the door or gate is swung inwardly to its closed position, it must pass over the main portion of the device, but when ap proached and struck form the outward side, the spring is bent in such a manner that the check and catch means at its end cannot function, and the door or gate passes freely over without being stopped.

It will be noted that on each side of the door or gate a portion of the catch plate projects a little, preventing any portion of the spring or bolt from engaging and marring the surface of the door or gate.

In Fig. 7 I have shown a modified form of the check and catch portion of my device. The coil spring 3 in this instance is reduced at its outer or free end as indicated by Be, and is wound tightly around the lower portion of the shank 18a of the check and catch member 18. This shank may be retained therein by the bent portions 18b and. 180, immediately above and below the tightly wound section, respectively. Immediately outwardly from the bend 18?), the shank is bent back and continues outwardly in true alinement with its tightly wound lower section a short distance. Integral and concentrio with the shank at its outer end, the check and catch disc 18d is provided, its ends being square or normal with its axis. This check and catch disc and the outer portion of the shank are of similar dimensions to corresponding parts of the form of check and catch member first described.

A modified form of the base of my invention is illustrated in Fig. 8. This form of the base is suitable for attaching the catch to any floor, wall, post, ceiling, or other stationary support by means of screws. It differs from the form hereinbefore described only in that the pipe is omitted entirely, and that the screw threads are omitted from the exterior of the lower portion of the plug 2, said lower portion being enlarged and provided near the outer edge with holes 19 for securing the flange to the floor or other support by screws 20.

In some situations, it is preferable to mount the main portion of the device horizontally against a wall or post or other vertical support, situated'just a little beyond the outer or free edge of the door or gate 10, as shown in Fig. 9. In this case, the stop is mounted so that the spring is substantially perpendicular to the axis of the pivotal supports 11, and the catch plate 12 is attached to said edge directly opposite the spring. When mounted horizontally, the operation of the stop and catch is similar to its operation when mounted vertically.

Though I have shown and described a particular construction, combination and arrangement of parts and portions, and various modifications thereof, I do not wish to be limited to this particular construction, combination and arrangement, nor to the modifications, but desire to include in the scope of my invention the construction, combination and arrangement substantially as set forth in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a device for retaining in position a closure having a portion adapted to move adjacent a supporting surface and a retaining means carried by said closure in proximity to said surface, a fastening means for said closure comprising a helical coiled spring member adapted to be flexed and extended longitudinally and terminating in convolutions tapering toward the axis thereof, an internally threaded retaining member adapted to be secured to the supporting surface and to receive the tapered end of said spring, a plug secured to and projecting from the free end of the spring member, the spring member normally projecting substantially vertically from the supporting surface across the pathof the movable-closure so that the resilient member will be engaged by the closure and Willbe flexed, and a catch portion on. said plug adapted to engage the retaining means-onthe:

at the inner end of the spring member, said.

plug. being provided with vertical passageslocatedoppositely of the threaded portion of. the plug to provide means for conducting foreign matter away from the flared outer end of' the passage, and catch means provided with a threaded-shank which is screwed into the tapering;convolutions of the spring member, aidisc formed integrally with the shank, the spring member: normally projecting substantially vertically from the supporting surface across the path of the movable closure so that the resilient member will be engaged by the closureand will be flexed, the shankand disc on the catch member engaging the retaining means for holding the closure in an open position. v

CURTIS GREENE. 

